Cookbook author Andrea Nguyen visits Grand Central Market and heads up the Banh Mi challenge
Banh Mi day was a huge success for Grand Central Market. I’ve wanted to check out the market (entrances on both Hill and Broadway) for some time now. Banh Mi Day and the book signing by cookbook author Andrea Nguyen, not to mention Banh Mi sampling, was the perfect little tug I needed to make my way to the market. So, why dedicate October 10th to the Banh Mi? Because the Banh Mi celebrates diversity and that is exactly what the Grand Central Market is all about. The Banh Mi is a Vietnamese sandwich that has staple ingredients of cilantro, liverwurst, mayo, pickled daikon and carrots, sliced up jalapenos and various choices of meat tucked nicely inside of a fresh straight out of the oven baguette. I would say the banh mi is the Asian version of a really good traditional American sub and that my friends, is a reason to celebrate.
Grand Central Market opened its doors in 1917. Locals in the neighborhood used to ride down the Angels Flight (which is considered the shortest train ride in the world) to shop in the open-air market. The Angels Flight is still located on the Hill St. side of the market.
The past two years Grand Central Market has been going through a facelift and with the help from local curators they are bringing in new vendors to mesh with existing vendors to create a vibrant environment as part of their effort to revitalize downtown.
Another effort is to create events that will entice the public to stop in and see what the market has to offer. Their first event was Banh Mi Day with special guest Andrea Nguyen, author of The Banh Mi Handbook. The entire market got involved with chefs from existing vendors creating their own version of the Banh Mi and putting their personal spin between a baguette. Also making an appearance was Randy Clemens, author of The Sriracha Cookbook. Randy participated as well in banh mi day by supplying lemongrass tempeh. I have to admit, I did hesitate for about 5 seconds before trying the tempeh banh mi because I’ve never eaten tempeh and I didn’t want to ruin what I was accustomed to. My sample of three bites was not enough. Seriously, it was dang good and the sauce, a bit tangy with a kick was amazing. All the more reason to always try EVERYTHING!
I was excited to meet the star of the night, Andrea Nguyen. I’ve been a fan of her blog, Viet World Kitchen for quite some time. Her work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, Sunset, Bon Appetit, Cooking Light and SAVEUR.
This was Grand Central Markets first try at an event like this on the Hill street platform and because of the huge turnout they are already in the works creating more similar events. Make sure to stay in the loop.
CLICK HERE for the Grand Central Market and a list of vendors
CLICK HERE to check out Viet World Kitchen with Andrea Nguyen